Express & Star

Rushall Olympic 2-0 Buxton - Report

The Pics took the lead in the 8th minute through Sam Whittall, when the high scoring midfielder got on the end of a Richard Brodie flick to stab home six yards out.

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The only other flash point in an otherwise quiet first half was a late challenge by Joe Maguire on Rushall’s Daniel Dubidat. The Buxton man was sent off in the aftermath which saw an altercation right in front of the visitor’s bench.

Liam Hardy went close twice in the space of a minute on 71 minutes with a couple of headed attempts. The first went wide of the left hand post but the second clipped the bar on the way over from a Jude Oyibo cross.

It was Greg Young’s chance to go close with a header for the visitors on 75 minutes when he got to a corner from the right hand side.

Hardy should have finally got his goal on 86 minutes but his powerful effort down the right was well held by Pics debutant Matthew Smith.

The visitors struck the bar again shortly afterwards, after Hardy’s poor free kick cannoned off the wall to Joe McGee, who smashed onto the crossbar and out of play.

The Pics sealed all three points in stoppage time when youngster Lewis Archer forced a decent save from Jan Budzt before racing to the loose ball and passing into the empty net.